Koplin 1

Braydan Koplin English 1010 Section .82 I. Peterson 02/27/2013 Whats a Vegetarian?

In the writing Meatless Like Me, Taylor Clark lets the reader experience what it is like to be a vegetarian in this modern world. He answers some of the lingering questions about vegetarians. What is a vegetarian? Will we panic if confronted with a hamburger? Is being a vegetarian make you weird? In this piece Clark playfully sheds some light on these and other questions about being vegetarian. Clark starts out with how he was treated the first time people hear he is a vegetarian. Then explains how vegetarians eat just like normal people just nothing that once had eyes. Next he says that not all vegetarians are animal right activists and they dont work for PETA. After he recognizes that meat taste good the aroma of, say, sizzling bacon, is wonderful but would rather not have to kill a pig for it. Then he talks about going to friends bbq people dont need to go out there way and put in a ton of effort to have a vegetarian friend over. Finally he ends with letting the reader know that when you are eating next to a vegetarian they are not judging you for eating meet. The way the world is to day with new sub-cultures popping up all the time. A lot of them are small and dont have very much say in the way they are viewed by everyone. This leads to

Koplin 2

miss guided guesses and bad assumptions that are often wrong. But know with more and more work being published online we are able to get the facts from those more directly connected to the sub-cultures themselves. Taylor Clark wrote this at a time or Kairos when sub-cultures are reaching out to clear up confusion about them. Now society just needs to hear them. As Clark trys to clear up what a vegetarian is he plays on the readers emotions or the pathos. He does this by starting out with an open-ended sentence Every vegetarian remembers his first time. This brings the reader in then he gives his first experience, the reaction he got was everyone within ear shot to stare at him as if he just revealed plans to sail his carrot-powered plasma yacht to Neptune. This lets the reader know this will have some humor in it. And this brings out the readers emotion and makes it easier to agree with Clarks point. After a little laugh Taylor backs himself up by saying, The U.S. boasts more than 10 million herbivores today. This lets the reader know he is not the only one discussing this topic. By putting himself in this big group it allows the reader to side with him more easily than if he was standing on his own. Then he goes on explaining the difference with in the vegetarian sub-culture, vegetarian and vegan. They way Taylor Clark writes this he is assuming the reader knows little to nothing about vegetarians. This helps him build up his point and then he goes back to why one would become a vegetarian in the first place. That just boils down to that individuals believes. This then leaves the reader to agree or disagree. The way Taylor Clark ends with the believes idea

Koplin 3

helps him out cause in modern America most people are mindful of others believes, wither then agree or disagree. This is how Clark uses logical appeal or show logos to the reader. Taylor Clark creates his own credibility or ethos in a few ways. First he starts with personal experiences so the reader can see what he has been through. This builds trust with the reader so they trust what he says at the end. Then he lays down some facts that meat taste good. He does this by saying, We know meat tastes good; its why theres a freezer case at your supermarket full of woefully inadequate meat substitutes. This shows sympathy to the other side of the argument. That makes the reader reconsider their position and lean towards Taylor Clarks side and gives him more credibility. Throughout the entire work the reader is exposed to many valid points that lead them to except vegetarians and not to be afraid of them. The way Clark uses his humor and personality grab the readers emotions. Then he lets you have the reason he is writing this. He is very logical in his reasoning everyone can live together no mater their believes, but just understand and respect each others deferences. The way America is know that shouldnt be too hard. The way America is now also makes this a perfect time for Taylor Clark to release this work. He also fills it with plenty of fact to give himself a good amount of credibility in this fun and informative piece Meatless Like Me.

Koplin 4 Works Cited Readings for Writers, Bedford St. Martins, pg. 73-77 Meatless Like Me, Taylor Clark.